Loom shuttle adapted for automatically stopping the loom on substantial depletion ofthe weft



R. H. STEHLI LOOM SHUTTLE ADAPTED FOR AUTOMATICALLY STOPPING THE Loom ON SUBSTANTIAL DEPLETION OF THE WEFT Filed May 15, 1953 Aug. 14,

Patented Aug. 14, 1934 LOOM SHUTTLE ADAPTED FOR AUTOMATI- CALLY STOPPING THE LOOM ON SUB- STANTIAL DEPLETION OF THE WEFT Robert Heinrich Stehli, Zurich, Switzerland Application May 15, 1933, Serial No. 671,224

In Switzerland May 19,1932 H 3 Claims. (of. 139- 205 This invention relates to loom shuttles adapted for automatically stopping the 100m on substantial depletion of the weft, by breaking the weft thread, and comprising a weft thread feeler memher which is arranged on the spool supporting spindle of the shuttle and which cooperates with the weft thread wound on the spool from within a tubular carrier for the thread through a slot in said carrier, the shuttle being applicable to looms 10 that are provided with a weft thread detector arranged centrally between the sides of the loom and adapted for immediately stopping the loom before the next following throw of the reed.

Loom shuttles comprising weft thread feeler '15 members of this kind, are known,;wherein thev According to the present invention the weft feeler mechanism is adapted to be rocked through the slot shortly before the depletion of the weft, by effect of at least one of the impacts imparted to the shuttle incidental to the shuttle bufiing' the shuttle box or the picking of the shuttle, in'

. such manner, that further unwinding. of the thread is resisted, so that immediately on the shuttle leaving the shuttle box, during its next traverse, the thread is broken and thus the central weft thread detector is rendered operative.

On operation of the central weft thread detector, the loom is stopped before the slay has completed its next throw, due to the thread end still connected to the fabric being shorter than half the width of the fabric. Since experience has shown that in breaking the weftthread in this manner ordinarily the point at which the thread is severed lies exteriorly of the shuttle, 'it is not necessary to thread through the thread endof 40 the fresh supply spool, as the fresh thread end can simply be twisted together with the old thread end and then be pulled through by means of the latter end. As with the device according to the invention the loom is stopped by means of the central weft thread detector, no othe'r stopping 5 apt to arise, when multiple box looms are inparture thereof.

'volved,jthe slay, in such looms being moved to and fro and the shuttle box up and down, so that the weft thread, if blocked when the shuttle arrives, is strained during the traverses of the second shuttle n opposite directions.

In order to improve the operation of the device, it is advantageous to provide means for ensuring that the device .is rendered operative not when the shuttle arrives in the shuttle box, but rather only after its departure therefrom. Means for this purpose may include a spring which cooperates with the weft thread feeler member in the sense of opposing the rocking movement thereof, thus preventing it from being rocked on the arrival of the shuttle, but only on the de-. 7

The impact imparted to the shuttle is cushioned by the retarding action exercised on the shuttle at the end of its traverse, the kinetic energy of the shuttle then being less than at the beginning of the traverse. In actual practice the effect of such a spring is, however,

immediately above is obtained by including a loose stop member in the spool supporting spindle so as to be adapted to adjust itself into different positions by effect of the impacts imparted to the shuttle during thethrows of the slay forward and rearward, thus blocking the weft feeler member on the arrival of the shuttle in the shuttle box and releasing said member on the shuttle starting to move out of the shuttle box, so that the weft feeler member can only be moved into operativeposition by effect of theimpact imparted tothe shuttle for startingthe same moving.

In the accompanying drawing several constructional forms of the invention are illustrated by way of. example only, in which Fig. 1 shows a sectional side elevation of a firstconstructional form of the invention;

Fig. 2 shows a plan view of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 shows a part-section of a spool supporting spindle;

Fig. 4 represents a section similar to Fig. 3 of a second constructional form of the invention;

Fig. 5 shows a cross-section on the line V--V in Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 shows a side elevation of a spindle inelusive of a quill for the'fweft windings, partly t to in section, for a third constructional form of the invention;

Fig. 7 illustrates a plan view of Fig. 6, also partly in section, and

Fig. 8 is a cross section on the line VIII-VIII in Fig.6. 7

Referring to the constructional form. of the invention as shown in the Figures 1 tog of the drawing, 1 represents the loom shuttle in which the spool supporting spindle 2 is pivotally-arranged, in a manner known per-se. In a, recess 3 of the spindle 2, a weft feeler arm 5 ispivotally mounted by means of a pivot ping. ,-A;tubular weft carrier or quill 6 is provided with a slot '7 at a portion thereof which overliesthe arm 5, r

for permitting this arm to swing through this the feeler arm 5 is situated, exteriorly of the weft windings proper, a spare winding 8-including -a' length of weft thread of a fewmetersjs placed.

The operation of the device is asfollows:

Due to its particular construction, the weft feeler armhas the tendency to swing-outwardly through the 'slot '7 in response to the impacts exerted on the shuttle on itsarrival inthe shuttle box and at the start of its movement respectively. However, as long as there is still an amount of weft -material present, on the quill sufficient to hold the feelerarm back, the latter rests against the inner windings of the weft. When, on the other hand, the weftris unwound so farthat only the spare winding 8 is left, during the next following impacts, thefeeler arm 5 is swung into the positionindicated by chain dotted lines in Fig. 3. Thethus outwardly rocked feeler arm prevents further unwinding of the weft thread, so that incidental to the next traverse of the shuttle the threadis brokenand thus the central weft thread detector rendered operative.

In the Figs. 4 and 5 a constructionalform of the invention isshown in which they feeler arm 5a swingably arranged onjthepivot 'pin4 is so constructed that it is, adaptedv to be. rocked in the direction opposite to that described inconnection with the previous constructional form.

In the constructional formraspertheli'igs. 6 to 8, a weft feeler arm 14 is swingablymountedin a slot 2a of the spool supportingspindlej by means of a pivot 15 .and provided onran extension 16 with a feeler. portion 17 whichcooperates with the weft windings by passingthrough a slot 7 formed in the quillyfi. In' alateral bore 18 of the spindle2 a ball 19 is guided soasto be adapted to roll to and fro insaid bore from one end position to the other in accordance with'the'directions of movement of theslay. ,During'the endmovement of the shuttle on itstraverse the slay moves forwardly and the ball 19 assumes'its inner. end position i. e. enters on thepath of the weftfeeler arm 14, thus preventing the same from being rockedoutwardly. Thereupon the slay moves backwardly while the stop ball occupies'its outer end position in which it is moved out ofthe path of the feeler arm 14, so'that'during the starting movement of the shuttle on its traverse thefeeler portion 17 is adapted to contact with the weft windings. Therefore, the arm l i-can'only be-out wardly rocked by effect of the impactimparted to the shuttle at the start of its traverse, when the weft is so far unwound that only thesparewinding 8 is left. 'On the -feeler arm 14 being s11bse-' ,rquently rocked, further unwinding of the ,weft thread is prevented soj that'during the next'following traverse of the shuttle the "thread isbroken' positively avoided.-

With.a.view toavoiding the spare winding, the weft feeler member may be provided with a rounded point instead of with the portion 17.

With this arrangement, the rounded point enters between the weft windings proper, shortly before the complete exhaustion of the weft, at a moment,

.where the resistance offered by the remaining windings has become small enough to permit this.

I do not limitmyself to the particular size, shap rnumber orarrangement of parts as shown and described, all of which may be varied without going beyond the scope of my invention as shown, described-and claimed.

What I claim is:

1.;In a loom shuttle for use in weaving looms provided with a weft detector member arranged for the immediate stopping of the loom before the next throw of the slay, in combination with a spool spindle, a slotted tubular carrier for the weft' a'loom shuttle body, a spool supporting spindle pivoted to said body, a slotted tubular carrier for the weft windings surrounding said spindle, a

weft .feeler member operatively connected with" said spindle and adapted to cooperate with said weft windings on said carrier through the slot in said carrier, operating means provided for said its feeler member, for automatically projecting the feeler portion of said member into operative position through said slot in said carrier in response to the impacts imparted to;the shuttle in the longitudinal direction of the same, for feeling s'tantial depletion of the weft, stop means for locking and releasing said operating means for said feeler member in accordance with the direction of the slay moving forwards or rearwards and the starting movement of the-same on its traverses, the blocked weft thread of the loom shuttle being torn by action of the traversing movement ofthe shuttle so that the weft thread detector entersinto actionby the-breaking of the thread on the following-throw.

,3. In a loom shuttle for use in weaving looms provided with weft detectors for stopping the through: theslotinsaid carrier, operating means ,providedfor said-feeler member, for automatically projecting the feelerportion of said member "into operative position through said slot in' said carrier inresponse to the impacts imparte'd'to-the,

'shuttle'in-the longitudinal direction of the same,

'the, weft thread and blocking the same on sub- 7 incidental to the end movement of the shuttle and movement of the shuttle and the starting movement of the same on its traverses, the blocked weft thread of the loom shuttle being torn by action of the traversing movement of the shuttle so that the weft thread detector enters into action by the breaking of the thread on the following throw.

ROBERT HEINRICH STEHLI. 

